Migraine Is Associated with Excess Stroke and Venous Thromboembolism Risk

Prior research has suggested an association between migraine and myocardial infarction and stroke (NEJM JW Gen Med Sep 15 2006 and JAMA 2006; 296:283; NEJM JW Gen Med Jun 1 2007 and JAMA Intern Med 2007; 167:795; NEJM JW Gen Med Oct 15 2010 and BMJ 2010; 341:3659). In this nationwide study, researchers in Denmark determined risks for adverse cardiovascular outcomes among 51,000 patients with migraine (but without known cardiovascular disease) who were compared with age- and sex-matched controls from the general population.

Median age at diagnosis of migraine was 35, and 71% of patients were women. After as long as 19 years of follow-up, migraine was associated with significantly higher relative risks for ischemic stroke (hazard ratio, 2.26),…